Sheinbaum taps new agriculture minister Julio Berdegue to lead Mexico

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has appointed Julio Berdegue, a former regional head at the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as her agriculture minister. The move signals a shift in emphasis for the incoming administration’s agricultural and food-security agenda.

In a Reuters interview, Berdegue said the government would drop the previous administration’s explicit goal of achieving self-sufficiency in yellow corn — largely imported from the United States and used for animal feed — and instead prioritize self-sufficiency in white corn, which is widely used for tortillas. Reuters cited figures showing Mexico imported roughly 15.3 million tonnes of corn in 2023 and that yellow corn imports had been worth about $6 billion annually.

The announcement has immediate trade implications: U.S. corn exporters and global grain markets will watch whether the new stance eases tensions created by earlier restrictions on genetically modified (GM) corn. Reuters reports that the U.S. challenged Mexico’s GM corn policy under the USMCA trade pact and that a trade panel decision is expected by year-end — a ruling that could influence bilateral trade flows and price signals.

Politically, the appointment marks a partial departure from some policies of outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who had sought to curb GM corn imports and promote domestic production as part of a broader protectionist agricultural agenda. Sheinbaum’s team frames its approach around increasing production while also pursuing environmental goals such as halving deforestation linked to agricultural expansion, particularly from avocado and livestock production.

Market participants and analysts say the near-term outlook depends on follow-through: whether Berdegue’s ministry and Sheinbaum’s government move quickly to clarify technical rules on GM imports, coordinate with U.S. counterparts, and implement production-boosting measures. Berdegue is expected to engage with U.S. officials on issues including cattle and feed trade, and markets — from corn futures to regional agricultural supply chains — will price in both policy clarity and the potential resolution of the USMCA dispute.